No, the airport code won’t be TNA. Or DDD.
The Metro Nashville International Airport Authority is set to vote tomorrow on a resolution supporting the renaming of Nashville’s main airport to honor country music legend Dolly Parton.
It was an effort that started with a change.org petition back in 2025, but gained new life after members of the Tennessee legislature and Metro Nashville City Council threw their support behind the name change last week.
In a press release following her death, Governor Bill Lee formally announced the state’s intent to name BNA in honor of Dolly Parton. Citing conversations between Lee and Dolly’s team, he noted how excited they are to honor her legacy with the name change.
“Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state. From her rural mountain home in East Tennessee to global stages, Dolly carried the Volunteer Spirit with her. At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that Nashville International Airport would bear the name of our state’s favorite daughter and greet travelers with the enduring legacy of Dolly’s music, generosity, faith, and kindness.”
Doug Kreulen, president and CEO of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, also expressed his support for renaming the airport:
“BNA is the front door to Music City, and with that comes a responsibility to reflect the very best of who we are as a community. Dolly’s remarkable legacy reminds us that what makes Nashville special is our ability to welcome people from every walk of life. She understood that dignity, kindness and opportunity should never be defined by where you come from or your socioeconomic status. At BNA, we share that commitment. Whether you are boarding a private aircraft or taking your first flight, you deserve to be welcomed, respected and served with the same level of care. That spirit is what defines BNA and it is a fitting reflection of the values Dolly shared with Tennessee and the world.”
And now the airport is taking the first steps towards making it happen.
The Metro Nashville Airport Authority Board is set to meet tomorrow, Friday, September 10, to vote on a resolution supporting the name change. It’s expected to pass unanimously, with all 7 members set to vote for renaming the airport after Dolly.
Though the resolution’s largely symbolic, it will set the process in motion for the board to revisit its naming policy, which must be changed in order for the airport to honor Dolly Parton: Their current policy, adopted in 2010, prohibits renaming the airport after anyone until at least two years after their death, and it must also be named after someone who “made a significant impact on aviation in Tennessee.”
That policy will obviously have to be changed before a vote to formally rename the airport after Dolly, but it sounds like the support is there to do whatever it takes to make it happen. The entire process is expected to take between six months and a year.
When it does, though, will it also get a new airport code which refers to the airport’s original name, Berry Field. The airport was originally named after Col. Harry S. Berry, Tennessee’s administrator for the Works Progress Administration who oversaw the airport’s construction in the 1930s.
The IATA airport code is not expected to change when BNA becomes Dolly Parton International Airport, leaving in place the three-letter designator that’s been used for decades. Although many have suggested changing it to DDD (for obvious reasons) or TNA (I’ll let you figure that one out) to further honor Dolly.
Regardless, it seems like by this time next year we could have bachelorettes departin’ from Parton.
